EL PASO, Texas -- An East El Paso mother who was misdiagnosed several times, nearly causing her to lose her life, is alive today thanks to the generosity of organ donors.

Southwest Transplant Alliance told KFOX that currently in the United States there are about 100,000 people waiting for an organ transplant and unfortunately at the end of each day, 18 will have died waiting for that gift of life.

KFOX spoke to 46-year-old Annabelle Nava, a mother of two sons who was misdiagnosed several times, and that caused her to fear for her life. "I was misdiagnosed with lupus at first, with ulcers, with depression,” said Nava of East El Paso. "It's real heartbreaking just to see your mom the one that's like, the one that does everything for you just to go through all of that,” said Nathan Nava, Nava’s son.

It wasn't until Nava consulted doctors out of town that they told her that her liver was bad and she needed a transplant in order to survive. "And little by little I got worse. I had cirrhosis, and I was on a transplant list. By the time I got to Dallas, I was already at the top of the list; I was really really bad,” Nava said.

But that wasn't the first time she would be needing a transplant. Five years after receiving the first one, complications arose. "The second time I had problems with blood clotting and so I lost my second liver, and that's very rare to have two transplants in one lifetime,” said Nava. Nava’s son was worried his mom wouldn’t get the second transplant, and he feared for her life.

Nathan Nava sighed as he said, "You feel scared, you know, like if you're going to lose your mom.”

Friday is "National Minority Donor Day," and right now Hispanics are at the top of the list waiting for an organ transplant. In Texas, more than 8,000 people wait for a transplant, and Hispanics top the waiting list with 3,500 candidates.

Victoria Armendariz with Southwest Transplant Alliance told KFOX that when a tragedy strikes, it's hard for family members to make a decision, which is why she wants the community to get the facts on becoming a donor. "We highly encourage to register yourself as an organ donor so that way your decision has been made. It takes the burden off of the family to make that decision for you,” Armendariz said.

Thanks to family members who allowed their members' organs to be donated and those who do register, Nava is still alive.

"When I see my two sons, my family, just the thought of me knowing that because of someone else I’m still here, I’m watching my sons grow up, I’m watching them graduate, watching them become men, it's just a blessing from God and it's a miracle,” Nava said.

"It's hard, but I’m glad she's still here, and I just thank God every day. I love her a lot,” said Nava’s son.

Nava also wants to share a message with the community.

"I know it's the hardest time when you're losing someone, but you have to think that because of that loss you're giving someone else life, someone like me,” said Nava.